One component of PCC’s recent capital bond program included the College’s renovation of two storefront buildings along the Killingsworth commercial strip adjacent to their Cascade Campus. The former Paragon Club was a windowless speakeasy and landmark within its diverse Northeast Portland neighborhood, where staff would buzz patrons through the security gate beneath their illuminated magenta and purple club sign. The neighborhood watering hole was vacant for nearly a decade when PCC enlisted DAO to renovate the 4000sf structure, to serve both current bond needs and undetermined future uses. The building’s structure was reconfigured with an extremely adaptable and open plan layout to accommodate numerous users and functions over time, and attract pedestrian traffic to activate its urban storefront context.

The building served as a spacious construction headquarters, alongside the Project Learning Center to educate the community about the bond-funded upgrades to the campus. The contractors vacated the space upon completion of the campus, and the school’s Art Department lobbied to utilize the structure for its Makerspace and Art Gallery. A frugal second phase services and tech upgrade accommodated myriad printmakers, laser cutters, 3D printers, sewing machines, and other fabrication equipment to support the department’s program of learning through creation.

Two gallery spaces are located adjacent to the busy thoroughfare, providing support and exhibition space for students and instructors, along with gathering space for artists and community organizations. Extensive glazing between the galleries and instructional shop provide daylighting and views from the street through to the Makerspace and FabLab areas on the building’s interior. Large strategically located skylights, reorganized and exposed roof framing, polished concrete floor, and painted plywood shear panels present a spare yet elegant interior appropriate for the facility’s context and mission. The project presents an extreme example of adaptive re-use, serving a broad range of active functions within the short duration of its recent renewal.